All the submissions to the 2017 Ned Kelly Awards have just been announced and as usual, every year as the entries start to roll in, I start to fret about the ones I haven't had a chance to read yet - this year, needless to say is no different :) Check out the full list at: http://www.austcrimewriters.com/2017-submissions or follow the links below to those that somebody here have been lucky enough to review.

In the third instalment of the Le Fanu Mystery series, the intrepid superintendent is promoted to Inspector-General of Police in 1920s Madras, which proves to be more boring than he had envisaged.

Instead of pushing papers across his desk, Le Fanu focuses on the disappearance of a senior Indian Civil Service officer and an apparently unrelated murder. As the two incidents intertwine, the world weary detective is drawn into the worlds of indentured labor recruitment and antiquities theft..

Book Review:

The Le Fanu series from author Brian Stoddart is one of those extremely elegant combinations of mystery fiction and historical lesson that also provides entertainment for readers. There's even a bit of good old fashioned romance from the male point of view. In short, there's something for all readers within these pages.

The third book, A STRAITS SETTLEMENT sees Le Fanu promoted above his desired wishes to acting Inspector-General, buried in paperwork and oddly behaving subordinate officers, increasingly desperate to resolve his ongoing faltering love affair with a local Anglo-Indian woman. It's not surprising that this reluctant bureaucrat seizes the opportunity to get back into some proper investigating work when a senior Civil Service member goes missing, and a seemingly unrelated murder occurs.

The sense of place and time in this series is absolutely pitch perfect - using as always something from the time as an element of the crime - in this case highly suspect indentured labour recruitment, people smuggling and antiquities theft. Always though, the ongoing question of British rule in India and the bubbling pressure for independence forms the backdrop, with elements of the struggle between colonial thinking and posturing and the reality of day to day life for the people cleverly incorporated. Le Fanu is the point of difference in the Colonial powers, and in the day to day society, with the manner in which he runs his household, his love affairs and his interactions with the locals. Even his food choices are not what the Colonial powers would approve of.

The manner in which Stoddart writes these books is pitch perfect. The historical elements, the factual tidbits, are built into the narrative in a way that lets the reader learn a lot and experience what it must have been like in that part of the world at that time. The mystery elements remain to the forefront and the personal bits and pieces are dotted throughout creating a character with depth. Le Fanu is not just a totally believable character he's nicely vulnerable, complicated and extremely easy to connect with. A series that really hasn't put a foot wrong, A STRAITS SETTLEMENT pushes the story of Le Fanu, his life and his future forward, setting up some major changes for the next book. Really looking forward to that.

In the third instalment of the Le Fanu Mystery series, the intrepid superintendent is promoted to Inspector-General of Police in 1920s Madras, which proves to be more boring than he had envisaged.

Instead of pushing papers across his desk, Le Fanu focuses on the disappearance of a senior Indian Civil Service officer and an apparently unrelated murder. As the two incidents intertwine, the world weary detective is drawn into the worlds of indentured labor recruitment and antiquities theft..

This year I've promised myself a red hot go at reading the entire submissions list for all 3 of the Ned Kelly Categories. Preferably before the 2016 Submissions List is released although there are days when I think I might have bitten off more than I can possibly chew. Still - getting there :)

This year I've promised myself a red hot go at reading the entire submissions list for all 3 of the Ned Kelly Categories. Preferably before the 2016 Submissions List is released although there are days when I think I might have bitten off more than I can possibly chew. Still - getting there :)

Next up Best First Crime - which is looking better in terms of keeping up with the submitted books.

The second Superindentent Le Fanu Mystery sees our intrepid British policeman on the trail of the murderers of an Indian Rajah. Under pressure from his superiors, pining for his lost love and allergic to the sight of blood, Le Fanu must navigate through a political mine-field of colonial intrigue in 1920s Madras.

Book Review:

There is often no better way to spice up a bit of historical fiction by adding a murder mystery. The historical detective story has taken crime and history lovers to plenty of times and places through ancient Rome, Tudor Britain and, in the more recent past, Ireland during the Troubles. Brian Stoddart has set his Inspector Le Fanu novels in Madras in the years after World War I. The British are still in power but their grip is slipping, thanks partly to the pacifist uprising being led by Ghandi. It is a fascinating time and place to explore and Stoddart clearly knows his way around.

The Pallampur Predicament has a number of intersecting mysteries that all revolve around life in British India. At the centre of the web is the Raja of Pallampur, brutally murdered in his Madras home after a formal reception. Just prior to that there were rumours of corruption, tax evasion and other strange goings on in Pallampur. As the case unravels connections spiral out to include the nascent British secret service and the influence of international organised crime organisations.

Inspector Le Fanu himself is typical of the historical crime genre. As the readers’ eyes and ears, Le Fanu brings a distinctly twenty-first century view of the world he is living in. He can see the writing on the wall for British Rule, he promotes his staff based on their ability, he clashes with some of his superiors over the way they treat the local people and he has an Anglo-Indian lover, something frowned upon by Madras society. He is also a dogged investigator, keeping his blackboards up to date and following the “rule book” for a successful investigation.

Where The Pallampur Predicament excels, its wealth of historical information, is also where it falls down a little. The plot tends to get bogged down with digressions full of historical exposition. At one point, a character even apologises for the lengthy explanation he has to give to the police about a particular historical point. The central mystery itself takes a bit of a back seat to the history lesson that all of the investigation of red herrings and dead ends brings to the reader. And the resolution of who killed the Raja and why is decidedly weak. But for those who like their history with a dash of mystery, The Pallampur Predicament is worth the effort.

The second Superindentent Le Fanu Mystery sees our intrepid British policeman on the trail of the murderers of an Indian Rajah. Under pressure from his superiors, pining for his lost love and allergic to the sight of blood, Le Fanu must navigate through a political mine-field of colonial intrigue in 1920s Madras.

Book Review:

The second book in the Superintendent Le Fanu series set in 1920's India, THE PALLAMPUR PREDICAMENT follows on closely from THE MADRAS MIASMA. So closely it would be worthwhile reading both books in order, although not absolutely necessary.

In the reasons why column, in true police procedural style, Le Fanu is hampered by a difficult boss who hates him and his methodologies. At the end of the first book this boss is promoted even further up the chain, and the results of that are played out in this second story. Without the background many of the twists and turns in that relationship won't be as revealing as they could be.

There is also a relationship building between Le Fanu and his assistant Habi which grows throughout the two books, as does the unlikely friendship, which is greatly informed by the colonial society in which they both live.

Understanding that societal group, it's petty politics and prejudices, and the tensions with the Congress, Ghandi and a local population resenting their Colonial overlords also benefits from the full story in both books.

As does the difficulties of Le Fanu's romance with his once was live in housekeeper who moves away and then returns in the second novel.

Having said that, the strength of these novels is in the way that all of that background is balanced against an ongoing police investigation, with each book pursuing unconnected crimes. The details of the tensions in post-independence India are fascinating, and weaving them into the life of a Superintendent of Police who is sympathetic to the local cause, supportive of the local people, and a fan of local food and culture works really well. THE PALLAMPUR PREDICAMENT takes Le Fanu from the heights of society - in the household of the Rajah of Pallampur who has been brutally murdered, through to the backstreets of Madras and out into the country. These locations and the people living and working there, along with some tendrils into the Secret Service provide many potential motivations, complications and suspects. All of this gives the author a chance to draw a really clear picture of the time and place.

This series is good, old-fashioned, crime / mystery fiction in the best sense of the style. There's a light touch to the humour, a genuine puzzle to be solved with sufficient red herrings to keep a reader's attention. Along the way there is a bit of a history lesson, particularly about Colonial society, and to be fair, it's not all black and white. Add to that a love affair which is risky simply because of the petty prejudices of others, and this is a series that works for fans of gentler, more puzzle based mysteries, as well as those that like the historical aspects.